Santo Domingo. The Institutional Codiano Committee (CIC) requested the National Congress to summon the Minister of Finance and Economy, Magín Díaz, to explain the reasons why the execution of Law 16-26 has not yet begun, more than two months after its enactment.
The request was delivered this Wednesday to both the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies by a commission composed of architect Emiliano Familia and engineers Samuel Peña and Miguel Liberato.
According to the CIC, the official’s appearance would allow for clarification as to why the commission responsible for implementing the regulations has not yet been formed, a step they consider essential to begin the review, validation, and recognition of outstanding debts with public works contractors.
The organization maintained that the delay keeps dozens of companies and professionals in the construction sector in uncertainty, who have been waiting for years for the payment of commitments assumed by the State.
Likewise, he proposed that the minister must inform Congress about the status of the law’s implementation, the scheduled timeline for the installation of the executive commission, and the measures that will be adopted to guarantee compliance with the legislation.
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The committee recalled that it had previously exhausted other institutional channels. It indicated that on June 1st it sent a communication to the Ministry of Finance and Economy requesting information on the process and, upon receiving no response, filed a formal notice weeks later.
He also reported that he went to the Ombudsman and raised the case before the General Directorate of Ethics and Government Integrity, with the purpose of having the situation evaluated from the point of view of transparency and access to public information.
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The CIC assured that its request does not respond to political interests, but rather to the need for an existing law to be complied with and for accountability to be guaranteed regarding a process that seeks to settle historical debts with State contractors.
Finally, the entity urged the presidents of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies to address the request and promote the appearance of the minister before the Permanent Finance Commission to report when the effective application of Law 16-26 will begin.
